As were several other individuals from Illinois, Holder wrote to notify Blood that the people in his community (around Bloomington, Illinois) were eager to share their "abundance" with "their brethren in Kansas." They were preparing to send potatoes, as well as wheat and oats, but needed help purchasing sacks and paying freight; "our people as you are probably aware are just recovering from the financial pressure of the past 3 years" and thus had "little money."